Surprise Tribute For Dr. Leslie A. Geddes

Dr. Leslie A. Geddes participates in early research at Purdue.

On September 22, colleagues, former students, and friends will gather to honor the man who is the heart of biomedical engineering at Purdue, and whose work and innovations are a cornerstone for biomedical engineering research and education worldwide. Prof. Leslie A. Geddes, the Showalter Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biomedical Engineering, is responsible for innovations ranging from burn treatments to implantable defibrillators, ligament repair to special blood pressure monitors for premature infants; and, most of all, for shaping biomedical engineering education to produce the leaders of today and of the future.

Prof. Dr. Geddes founded biomedical engineering at Purdue when he and a team from Baylor University came here in 1974 to open what became the Hillenbrand Biomedical Engineering Center. While he officially retired as Center Director in 1991, the 85–year–old Geddes continues both research and educational activities, arriving at 4:30 am every morning.

Those speaking at this surprise event include:

John DeFord, a Purdue alumnus and vice president of science and technology at C. R. Bard Inc.